Shea Moisture is well known throughout the beauty world for its many products designed not only natural hair but all hair types. With Shea moisture campaigning to have their line displayed in other sections besides just the "ethnic hair" aisle (if that's what you want to call that small section), their products promote healthy scalps with a lot of quality ingredients. Shea Moisture was one of the first products I began to use once I stopped relaxing my hair thanks to the many praises by YouTubers. While Shea Moisture's products to help keep my hair happy and healthy, they also cause a lot of build up which requires me to wash my hair more often than I have time for.

Since I didn't want to shampoo my hair every time I washed it, I dived into the world that some naturals follow: Co-washing. Co-washing is cleansing the scalp with a conditioner instead of a shampoo. It helps rehydrate, and refresh your hair without having to strip the oils from your scalp. Co-washing is effective if done properly. While co-washing is recommended, it's best to create a routine that will bring ultimate health to your hair which is why I still use a clarifying shampoo once a month to truly get rid of any build up on my scalp.

Since I was new to the Co-washing thing I decided to try Shea Moisture's Coconut & Hibiscus Co-Wash Conditioning Cleanser. The Co-wash states that it's specifically for thick, curly hair and that it removes impurities without stripping hair of natural oils. The first time I used it I wasn't exactly sure if it worked. My scalp didn't feel clean, and I thought perhaps I hadn't done it correctly. I Co-washed the same way I shampoo: dividing my hair into sections, detangling, applying co-wash/shampoo, and rinse thoroughly. I followed the directions to a T and really massaged the product onto my scalp for 3 minutes working from my roots to the ends of my hair. After that, I rinsed with warm water. The next few times I used the product I repeated those steps (massaging for 5 minutes instead of 3) and even repeated it once or twice.

The Co-wash did help in conditioning my hair, but I don't feel it did much to clean my scalp. It was more like a regular conditioner (which isn't necessarily a bad thing, except I bought a co-washing conditioner, not a regular one). It also didn't really clear any of the build-up on my scalp. I suppose that not many co-washes are meant to completely cleanse the build-up from your scalp, but I did expect it to work way better than it did. In regards to finger detangling, I had to use a different conditioner to get a good amount of slip so that I could properly detangle my hair. Although the product says it's for thick, curly hair, it didn't perform for my thick, curly hair. Perhaps my hair wasn't the right type for this product to work. Maybe it'd work on someone who has looser curls.

My overall rating is a 3 out of 5.

Pros:

• Penetrates hair shaft

• Made the hair soft and shiny

• Quality Ingredients

Cons:

• Doesn't clear build-up

• Doesn't make detangling easier

• Mildly thick consistency

• Lightweight (not for thick curls)

RATING: 🥀🥀🥀

Have you ever tried the Shea Moisture Coconut & Hibiscus CoWash? What are your thoughts?